At A Glance

SCARBOROUGH is not only a great place for visitors to enjoy themselves but within it there are a variety of pockets which can provide a feast of entertainment and attractions whatever the weather.

The town can be divided into north and south bays, with the castle ruins on the headland separating the two. South Bay is lively and lined with countless amusement arcades, fish and chip restaurants, crab and whelk stalls and gift stores.

Entertainment is on offer from rides on merry-go-rounds on the beach and donkey rides and Punch and Judy shows for small children to a tour of the film sets of the thriller movies at Terror Tower.

Visit the Harbour Bar, an ice cream parlour with a warm welcome, and there is ten-pin bowling at Olympia a little further along.

Why not go for a trip on the Coronia or Regal Lady, pleasure cruisers which will take you on a tour of the local coastline? Luna Park is a small funfair on the edge of Scarborough’s busy harbour.

It boasts a ferris wheel, where impressive views out to sea can be enjoyed, as well as other exhilarating rides. The Futurist Theatre has a variety of shows throughout the summer to suit all ages and tastes as well as showing cinema screenings.

At the end of the bay, just a short walk across the impressive Spa Bridge, is the famous Scarborough Spa Complex with its theatre, conference rooms, and black and white paved Sun Court.

North Bay has a wide variety of places to visit.

At one end is Scarborough Castle – the infamous Richard III was said to have slept there.
At the other end, a short distance past North Cliff Golf Club, is the Sea Life Centre. The attraction is not just a great place to learn about the sea and wildlife but it plays a vital part in helping to conserve the creatures of the sea. Kinderland is a fun park leased from Scarborough Council by a family. Then there is Atlantis, the open-air water park, and nearby is an indoor swimming pool.

The Corner Complex will refresh you with food and drink and also provides entertainment, especially for children.

Just a short walk from there is Peasholm Park, which not only has a popular bandstand area but can provide boating on the lake, pitch and putt and regular events such as naval warfare and waterski shows.

The nearby Alexandra Bowls Centre is not only popular for its activities but also for its catering, while the Hollywood Plaza cinema provides a variety of films for all ages.
Crazy golf will provide entertainment for people of all ages while the younger ones will enjoy the skateboard area in Clarence Gardens.

For those who want to reminisce about journeys past there is always the chance to try the mini-railway beside Atlantis.

SCARBOROUGH completely overhauled its parking system in the summer of 2000 to try to ease congestion and improve vehicle flows, particularly in the town centre.

Scarborough Council employs a small army of parking wardens to ensure the system works properly.

It is advisable for visitors to check carefully which regulations apply when they park their vehicles so they don’t risk being fined. There is a mixture of free disc parking, on-street pay-and-display parking, and council-run and private car parks.

There is free disc parking in the majority of streets just outside the town centre, and depending on the zone people can leave their vehicles for one, two or three hours.
Visitors can find out which zone they are in by checking the signs sited at regular intervals.
A disc must be set in the windscreen and they can be obtained free from hundreds of outlets including local shops and businesses.

Visitors intending to stay overnight should contact their hotel or guest-house owner, who can supply scratchcards for free parking in some parts of the town.

There are numerous pay-and-display machines in town centre streets with the maximum time drivers are allowed to stay ranging from one hour to four hours.

Charges, which are 20p for every 15 minutes, have not been put up since the new parking scheme was introduced.

The council also provides a range of short-stay, medium-stay and long-stay car parks, while there are private car parks at the Brunswick Centre, at the railway station and near the Palm Court Hotel. There is also an NCP car park in North Street.

Disabled badge holders are exempt from the on-street parking controls and charges and are unaffected by the time restrictions that apply in disc zones.

They are not exempt from payment of parking charges on the pay-and-display off-street car parks.

Some spaces have been lost while work is being carried out on the £33.6 million sea defences scheme on the Marine Drive. The council has provided a new car park in Dean Road on the site of the former St Mary’s Hospital to compensate for the loss of spaces. Other places to park are at:
Albion Road, Brook Square, Burniston Road, Castle Road, Eastborough, Esplanade (coaches only), Falconers Road, Friarsway, King Street (weekends and bank holidays only), North Street, North Terrace, Northstead Lower, Northstead Upper, Quay Street, Royal Albert Drive, Scalby Mills, SBU, Spa Drive, St Nicholas Parade, St Thomas Street Upper, St Thomas Street Lower, Victoria Park, Victoria Road, Weaponness Valley Road, West Pier, Westwood and William Street. l For further help regarding parking call Scarborough Council’s parking services team on 0800 0568458. SCARBOROUGH is undoubtedly a shopper’s paradise.

The Brunswick Shopping Centre, Scarborough’s indoor shopping centre, opened its doors more than 10 years ago and has since gone from strength to strength.

The complex offers a wide choice of shops such as Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Top Shop, Top Man and the Index catalogue shop, plus two cafes – and a 325-space car park. The shop doorways are large and accessible, so getting in and out for parents with double buggies will not pose a problem. There is also a disabled access to every floor. The town also boasts an indoor market, and besides the shops in the main Market Hall there are many tucked away underneath. The appeal of the Market Vaults extends to a wide cross-section of visitors in search of something different. There is a cafe and access for the disabled.

Take a stroll from there along Eastborough and discover the antique shops, designer teddy bears, fishing tackle, jewellery, gifts, side by side with restaurants and fish and chip take-aways.